The newly crowned “Stock God,” Li Yi, personally stepped in to frantically snap up Hang Seng Bank shares on the “Hong Kong Island Club’s” turf, sending shockwaves through the Hong Kong stock market.
The British-owned conglomerate promptly entered the fray, throwing everything they had into repelling the “Stock God’s” offensive, and a titanic battle erupted between the two sides!
That evening, all major television stations in Hong Kong vied to cover the story… Headlines like “Clash of Titans” and “The Sino-British Capital Showdown” competed to grab the public’s attention.
As soon as the story broke, it caused a sensation.
Whether investors or ordinary people who rarely paid attention to the stock market, everyone showed considerable enthusiasm for the story.
Walking down the street, you could hear people discussing it everywhere, with almost everyone cheering for Li Yi.
It’s no wonder everyone was so focused on this—mainly because Hong Kong residents knew that Hang Seng Bank was a subsidiary of HSBC, and Li Yi’s frenzied acquisition of Hang Seng shares was effectively poaching from HSBC’s own backyard.
And as a core member of the British-owned conglomerate, HSBC has dominated Hong Kong for decades, firmly establishing itself as a local powerhouse.
On one side is a rising stock market legend, an upstart from across the strait.
The other is the established kingpin, a local powerhouse in Hong Kong Island—the clash between them is nothing short of a titanic battle.
More importantly, ordinary people have been severely exploited by these British-owned enterprises over the years and have long been seething with frustration.
Now that they finally see someone rising up to take on those foreign devils head-on, the common people naturally cheer with delight.
Although most people are watching this spectacle with a “the more drama, the better” attitude, deep down, everyone hopes that Li Yi, this newly crowned “stock market guru,” can put a dent in the arrogance of those foreigners.
But many are also worried about whether Li Yi can withstand the pressure from those foreigners.
The general public is well aware of just how powerful British-owned conglomerates are on Hong Kong Island; over 60% of the city’s assets are controlled by these foreigners.
More importantly, they also control the British Hong Kong government and law enforcement agencies of all levels; ordinary people simply lack the capacity to stand up to such power.
With the opposition already stepping in to block him, no one is sure if Li Yi will continue to stand his ground.
If he can’t withstand the pressure and chooses to back down the very next day, that would be a huge disappointment.
For the time being, opinions among Hong Kong Island residents are divided on whether Li Yi will continue to battle the British-funded conglomerates.
But regardless of the reasons, the people of Hong Kong Island were now completely captivated by the financial battle between these two sides…
However, Li Yi did not disappoint the people of Hong Kong. He did not choose to back down simply because the British-funded conglomerate had entered the fray; instead, he chose to continue fighting head-on.
Early the next morning, amid the anticipation of the public, Li Yi arrived punctually at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with his team.
Upon seeing this, the crowd gathered outside the exchange to watch the spectacle erupted in thunderous cheers.
What excited the public even more was that as soon as the market opened, Li Yi launched another offensive, driving Hang Seng Bank’s stock price directly from HK$190 to HK$195.
Such a high price naturally caught the attention of many investors holding Hang Seng Bank shares, and some retail investors, unable to resist the temptation of the high price, rushed to sell off their holdings.
However, the British-owned group was not to be outdone; they immediately raised their bid price, even surpassing Li Yi’s offer by two Hong Kong dollars.
Li Yi, of course, would not be outmaneuvered and continued to raise his bid.
Amid the fierce competition between the two sides, Hang Seng Bank’s stock price skyrocketed. In less than half a day, the price per share broke through the HK$205 mark.
It’s worth noting that just yesterday afternoon, Hang Seng’s share price was only 176. In just over a day, it had surged by 29 Hong Kong dollars—a gain that absolutely outpaced all other listed companies in Hong Kong, making it a true dark horse and a speculative stock.
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Hong Kong Stock Exchange VIP Lounge!
Li Yi glanced at the documents in his hand and said calmly, “So, the funds from the He, Luo, and Li families have all been secured. Only the Yun family’s 100 million is still pending?”
“That’s right. My old man said he’ll cover the remaining 100 million. Just go ahead and make your move, Brother Yi!” Li Yunbao replied.
“Money is a minor issue. Have your old man thoroughly investigate the Yun family—they’re likely the spies those Westerners have planted within our ranks!” Li Yi said.
“We’re already looking into it. We should have news soon!”
“Alright…”
Just then, Pang Feiyan hurried in from outside and said to Li Yi, “Boss, they’ve raised the price again!”
“Oh, by how much?”
“Another 5 yuan—it’s up to 210 yuan now. What should we do? Should we keep raising our offer?” Pang Feiyan asked.
“How many Hang Seng shares have we acquired so far?” Li Yi asked in a low voice.
“260,000 shares—that’s 5% of the free-floating shares and 1.5% of the total shares!”
Li Yi immediately ordered, “Raise the price to 220 yuan. We must acquire 1.7 million shares before the market closes today!”
“Yes!” Pang Feiyan replied without hesitation.
As one of the earliest investment elites to follow Li Yi, Pang Feiyan understood his temperament well and knew he disliked others questioning his decisions.
Therefore, when it came to critical actions, she never asked why.
Whatever Li Yi said, she carried out resolutely, without compromise.
Following Li Yi’s orders, Starry Sky Company raised the stock price once again, this time by 10 Hong Kong dollars per share in a single move.
This immediately put pressure on the British-owned conglomerate.
Although the current surge in stock prices had boosted Hang Seng’s market capitalization, everyone knew that such prices could not be sustained for long.
Once the battle between the two sides concluded, the stock price would inevitably drop rapidly, perhaps even plummet.
Under these circumstances, some rational investors would inevitably sell their shares at the peak to cash out their profits.
Consequently, for Smith and his associates, continuously using their own funds to buy back shares held by investors is a highly risky endeavor.
Therefore, the level of the stock price and the size of the market capitalization hold no practical significance for them—most of the shares will eventually return to their hands anyway.
But they cannot afford to sit idly by. Once Li Yi’s stake exceeds 5%, he can file a report with the Hang Seng Bank board and apply to become an official shareholder of the company.
If his acquired shares exceed 30%, he will become the company’s second-largest shareholder, and the company will no longer be able to hide any business operations from him.
Moreover, once Li Yi becomes a shareholder, he will have the right to investigate the company’s finances and other matters, making it difficult for many issues to remain undisclosed.
In light of this, Smith and his associates had no choice but to grit their teeth and keep raising their bids.
Thus, amid the standoff between the two sides, Hang Seng’s stock price continued to climb.
By November 20, Hang Seng’s share price had reached a staggering HK$256, a rise of a full HK$80 per share compared to just a few days earlier.
In this battle for shares, Star Company spent 310 million to acquire 1.35 million shares of Hang Seng, representing 7.5% of the total shares.
Meanwhile, the British-funded consortium also poured in 850 million to acquire a 17% stake.
At this point, 5.5% of the outstanding shares were still held by a large number of retail investors.
These investors were all sitting on the sidelines, waiting for higher prices.
However, while the stock market was in a frenzy over the acquisition of Hang Seng shares, Li Yi made a new move.
First, he had Li Futao act as an intermediary to arrange a meeting with several Chinese shareholders of Hang Seng Bank, proposing to acquire their shares and even offering a high price of 280 Hong Kong dollars per share.
As soon as the news broke, it immediately caught the attention of Smith and his associates.
It must be noted that Starry Sky had already secured a 7.5% stake in Hang Seng Bank; if they were to acquire additional shares from those Chinese shareholders, their ownership stake would increase further.
This would give them even greater influence within Hang Seng Bank—a scenario Smith and his team were determined to prevent.
In light of this, Smith immediately arranged a meeting with the Chinese shareholders, hoping they would stand with them through thick and thin.
Even if they wished to sell their shares, they were to sell them exclusively to the British consortium.
Soon, under Smith’s direction, the British-owned group acquired 2.7 million shares of Hang Seng from the Chinese shareholders for 750 million.
Only after this was done did Smith and his associates finally breathe a sigh of relief.
But just then, Li Yi made a move that caught them off guard: he liquidated his entire position in Hang Seng shares…
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